[Klaus]

The 3 big plusses for DSLRs are:

• Optical view finder
  
• Fast PD AF for fast focus lock and fast focus tracking
  
• Big lens range with long tele lenses and shallow DOF.
  

Sony already did away with the OVF advantage, for "PD AF in video". Sigh. Plus point for the SLT approach: camera overheating quickly due to constant live view and closed off sensor compartment.

 

The PD AF tracking for the current SLT cameras is not impressive at all. Which is strange, as the A700 was great in focus tracking. So, just another reason why the A99 and A77 are not a success. 

 

On the lens range, Sony has killed off some great lenses for the A-mount, and not introduced all that many. So also on that front, the SLT range is not really all that attractive for serious amateurs and professionals. It seems that Sony has been making all the wrong decisions to make the A-mount they took over from Minolta a success. Kinda sad (considering some of the great Minotal lens designs), but it is just one of those things.

 

So since Sony seems to have the worst strategy, it will only take time before the A-mount goes the 4/3rds way?

 

Sony has lots of high end A-mount lens goodness but the system is weak in terms of prosumer stuff - which is IMHO the reason for the limited success of the A77/A99. The AF is fine based on what I have seen.

 

As for video - I'm still considering a DSLR to be an oddity for this purpose. Conceptually it is just not meant to be for this in terms of handling.

[Brightcolours]

Sony has lots of high end A-mount lens goodness but the system is weak in terms of prosumer stuff - which is IMHO the reason for the limited success of the A77/A99.

I don't know, to me it seems in the high end the system is kinda weak. 

The AF is fine based on what I have seen.

Foto Magazin did another tracking test, in the same fashion as they did years ago, tracking a car at a controlled speed on a specified track with different cameras. Where before the A700 did well with the Sony 70-200mm f2.8 G (although with a low number of shots due to its shot to shot speed), the A99 and A77 did abysmal. The A77 performed worst from all tested combinations, the A99 performed worse than the 7D, 1D-X, D4, D7100 (which did not overly well), nikon 1 V2 (which performed exceptionally well) among others.... 

As for video - I'm still considering a DSLR to be an oddity for this purpose. Conceptually it is just not meant to be for this in terms of handling.

[Guest]

I still hope this doesn't signal the end of dedicated A-mount cameras. And I couldn't care less for how well an overpriced camera with an overpriced lens tracks large and predictable subject (e.g. a car). As I once wrote, when I'm trying to photograph my dog running in the real-life environment, it gets down to my inability to keep the AF sensor on him.

And I do have at least one reason to like SLT design - it protects the sensor from dust better than the shutter; I do feel that. And in most cases when you need to clean, you can just blow the dust off the mirror without switching the camera on. Or you can raise the mirror and blow the dust off the sensor; still the camera is switched off.

[miro]

http://www.sonyalpharumors.com/sr5-first...-in-japan/


So the A-mount is dead beef ?

Well does it mean that FF is dead beef

[Brightcolours]

Well does it mean that FF is dead beef

Sony already produces and sells an E-mount FF model.

[Guest]

Both bad screen and bad EVF, only manual switching.

Huge body with just a few buttons is silly unless you are shooting full auto.

 

It may sell, but not with people reading lens reviews obviously )


I think cheap kits with 18-200LE would also sell.

[Klaus]

The viewfinder resolution is a bummer indeed.

[marco]

This is the Opel Manta of E-Mount. :-) But it will be work for their customers: Looks like a DSLR, so it's serious, has a good Auto mode and it is cheap. Actually with some cheap sigma lenses you can make pictures in a really good pictures.

 

It is not for gear junkies but I have a really strong opinion about them too. The pictures of them are not that much more interesting but their investment is much higher. :-)

 

I hope their will be a NEX without a viewfinder and with a much better sensor(DR, angle of light) in one year or so.

[joachim]

I think the interesting aspect is even for mirrorless where you do not suffer design constraints companies believe consumers want something that looks like 35mm SLR.

[Guest]

Assuming it has the same sensor as A58, it will outperform  many more expensive cameras image-quality wise. Looks like owners of A58 like this sensor a lot.

Hope Sony doesn't repeat the mistake of putting the star sensor into lower-end bodies only. They did it with their 14Mpix CCD sensor once - it was installed in A350, A290 and A390; all entry-level. At the same time it was considered better on low ISO than the CMOS of the semi-pro A700 model. Better enough for many A700 owners to wish they had the 14Mp CCD despite high-iso noise.

 

Other than that, it's not a fair replacement for low-end MAF cameras. Putting the lens compatibility aside, there's no in-body AS/SSS, and no wireless flash.